Toddler died of homicide, not choking, according to autopsy

LAS CRUCES — A toddler's death in April, which was reported at the time as having been caused by choking on on gummy candy, has now been ruled a homicide by the The New Mexico Officer of the Medical Investigator.

The child actually died of blunt-force injuries to the head and neck, according to OMI.

An autopsy report released Thursday by OMI states that 21-month-old Mariano Hernandez died April 22 in an El Paso hospital. The autopsy report cited other reports saying that two days earlier, Hernandez was riding in the car of an unidentified caretaker — a "family friend" — when he started to choke on a piece of candy.

The caretaker reportedly pulled over and tried to dislodge the candy. According to a video re-enactment of the incident, cited by the medical investigator, the caretaker "forcefully pulled Mariano from his car seat, hitting his head on the frame of the car." The caretaker said he then forcefully patted the back and chest of Hernandez, finally removing the candy with a "mouth sweep."

According to the autopsy report, the caretaker then drove a few blocks to the house of Hernandez's aunt, where somebody called an ambulance. The report notes that "there were approximately 20-30 minutes between the time the caretaker left the house and EMS was called."

The medical investigator concluded, the report says, that the array of injuries Hernandez suffered, including skull and rib fractures, were not the result of accidental trauma.

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Wrote the medical investigator of the injuries: "They are not consistent with the story and re-enactment provided by the caretaker to law enforcement."

No further information was available from the Las Cruces Police Department. There was a call to respond to a CPR situation that day, but further details are contained in a supplemental report that is not available.

A spokeswoman for the 3rd Judicial District Attorney's Office said an investigation is pending. A criminal complaint has not been filed in court regarding Hernandez's death.

The autopsy report also found Hernandez had healing fractures in both arms. Those injures could have occurred days to weeks before the fatal trauma, according to the report.

Hernandez was pronounced brain dead on April 22, and doctors harvested several organs — including his beating heart —for transplant, the report said.

James Staley may be reached at 575-541-5476. Follow him on Twitter @auguststaley